The decisions you make in the hours and days after an accident have a direct impact on the value of your case. Insurance companies begin building their defense immediately. The steps you take — or don’t take — before you ever speak to an attorney can strengthen or seriously damage your claim.
Here is exactly what to do, in order.
Step One — Get Medical Treatment Immediately
This is the most important step and the one most people get wrong. Even if you feel okay go to an emergency room or urgent care the same day. Many serious injuries do not produce obvious symptoms right away. Whiplash, herniated discs, traumatic brain injuries, and internal injuries can take hours or days to become apparent.
If you wait to seek treatment the insurance company will argue your injuries were not caused by the accident. The gap between the accident and your first medical visit is one of the first things defense attorneys look for. Close it.
Step Two — Report the Accident
If you were in a car accident call the police and get a police report. If you were injured at work report the accident to your employer in writing the same day — text message is fine, email is better. If you were injured on someone else’s property notify the property owner or manager and ask for a written incident report.
Written notice creates a record that the accident happened when and where you say it did. Do not rely on verbal reports.
Step Three — Document Everything at the Scene
Photograph the hazard that caused your injury before it is altered or repaired. Photograph the surrounding area, any warning signs that were present or absent, any equipment involved, and your visible injuries. Get the names and contact information of any witnesses. Note whether there are security cameras nearby.
If you were in a car accident photograph both vehicles, the road conditions, any skid marks, traffic signals, and street signs. Get the other driver’s name, insurance information, license plate number, and driver’s license number.
Step Four — Preserve Evidence
Tell your attorney immediately if there is surveillance footage that may have captured the accident. Footage is typically overwritten within 30 to 90 days. Your attorney can send a legal preservation letter demanding it be retained but only if they know it exists.
Save the clothing and shoes you were wearing at the time of the accident. Do not wash them. In slip and fall cases the condition of your footwear is often raised by the defense as a contributory factor.
Step Five — Do Not Talk to Insurance Companies
Do not give a recorded statement to any insurance company before speaking with an attorney. This applies to your own insurer as well as the other party’s. Adjusters are trained to ask questions that elicit admissions of partial fault or minimize the severity of your injuries. You are not required to give a recorded statement and doing so almost always hurts your case.
If an insurance company calls you before you have an attorney tell them you will be represented by counsel and that all further contact should go through your attorney. Then go get an attorney.
Step Six — File Your No-Fault Claim if You Were in a Car Accident
New York requires you to file your no-fault claim within 30 days of the accident. Missing this deadline can result in your benefits being denied entirely. File the claim with your own insurance company as soon as possible. Your attorney can handle this on your behalf but if you do not yet have one file it yourself immediately.
Step Seven — Track Everything
Keep a folder — physical or digital — with every document related to your accident. Medical bills, treatment records, prescription receipts, correspondence with insurance companies, photos, witness information, police reports, and incident reports. Keep a daily journal documenting your pain levels, limitations, and how your injuries are affecting your daily life.
Document every day of work you miss and every dollar you spend as a result of your injuries. This documentation becomes the foundation of your damages calculation.
Step Eight — Consult a Personal Injury Attorney
Most personal injury attorneys in New York work on contingency — you pay nothing unless they win. There is no financial risk to getting a consultation and no obligation to hire anyone. The sooner you consult an attorney the sooner they can begin preserving evidence, identifying responsible parties, and building your case.
Bring everything you have documented to your first consultation. The more information your attorney has from the start the stronger your case will be.
What Not to Do
Do not post about your accident on social media. Do not accept any settlement offer before consulting an attorney. Do not miss medical appointments or stop treatment before your doctors formally discharge you. Do not sign anything an insurance company sends you without having an attorney review it first.